Staying on top of your credit report can help keep your finances — and identity — in check. But how often does your credit report hit the refresh button? Most credit report updates appear within one or two months, but some new activity registers almost immediately, or after a few weeks. The timing depends on when the lender reports the updated score to the credit bureaus. Most lenders report monthly, usually around the closing date on your statement.
Imagine you’re about to apply for your first mortgage or buy a new car. It’s probably a good time to examine your credit report.
Checking your report and score helps you gain insight into your present credit standing and pinpoint what information about your credit is accessible to lenders. Examining your report can also help you identify any incorrect or incomplete information.
If you spot a problem in your report and work to fix it, it can take weeks — or even months — for any changes to appear. Other times, new activity seems to register almost immediately. You may notice that updates to your credit profile seem to happen on a mysterious timeline.
But there’s no mystery: The timing varies because credit reports aren’t updated in real-time. Understanding the credit reporting process can help you better manage your own score and eliminate confusion.
How often do credit issuers report to the bureaus?
Credit reports provide a snapshot of your credit at a given moment — and what’s included in that snapshot depends on the reporting timelines of the lenders and the three major credit bureaus (TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian), all of which can vary considerably.
Since different creditors, including credit card companies and loan providers, follow different reporting timelines, it’s difficult to predict exactly when an update will appear.
Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, businesses are not required by law to report your loan activity to the credit bureaus. Small businesses, for example, may not meet the reporting requirements set forth by TransUnion and the other bureaus.
But the vast majority of your accounts probably do file reports with the bureaus. Since lenders rely on consumers’ credit scores, it’s in their best interest to make sure the credit reporting system is as accurate as possible.
Most lenders report to the credit bureaus once per month, though that can vary. Some businesses report more frequently, while others report every 45 days.
There are costs associated with this process, so some lenders may make financially motivated decisions about how often to report — daily, weekly, or monthly — and whether to report to one credit bureau or to all three. The process of shipping and processing all of this information can also differ, which helps explain why some updates appear on your credit report more quickly than others.
How often does your credit score update?
According to TransUnion, when the bureaus receive information about your accounts, they usually update it right away. Experian confirms that a consumer’s credit report can change daily, or even multiple times a day.
These frequent updates don’t always translate to dips and waves in your score. If you’re usually punctual about paying your bills, another on-time payment might not have a significant impact. A sudden missed mortgage payment, on the other hand, could do serious damage to your score.
Once the credit bureaus roll out their updates, the information is sent to credit monitoring services, like the one we offer to our members.
When updates are slow to surface — say, when that mortgage application you filed in October finally posts as a credit inquiry in December — you may wrongly interpret them as fraudulent activity.
Common types of credit activity
While reviewing your alerts, you may come across new terms.
The credit issuer’s name might appear differently on your alerts. For example, Best Buy may appear as “BBY,” while Chase appears as “JPMCB Card Services.”
Terminology can vary across agencies, too — that’s why one of our credit alerts might say “delinquent,” while another might say “derogatory.”
Some transactions generate multiple credit alerts. For example, when you apply for a new credit card, you may receive two alerts: one when the lender is looking at your profile to determine your creditworthiness, and a second when your account is officially open. This is expected, and not a reason for concern.
But if you ever receive an alert and it seems unfamiliar, log in to your account for more information or reach out to our Customer Care team for help.
You may be wondering how long some information remains on your credit report — especially the not-so-great stuff, such as a missed payment or a tax lien.
Incorrect information, such as a wrong address on a credit report could take as little as 30 days to be removed.
However, most negative information will remain on your credit report for up to seven years, including the following:
Late payments
Collection accounts
Student loan defaults
Foreclosures
Some information takes longer to roll off your report. Bankruptcies, for example, can remain on your report for up to ten years from the date you file. If your state has a debt statute of limitations that’s longer than seven years, lawsuits or judgments may remain on your report for even longer.
Improving your credit score
The best way to improve your credit score is to practice healthy financial behaviors over time. If you’re paying your bills on time, keeping credit card balances low, and routinely monitoring your score, you’re on the right track.
If you’re trying to turn around a poor credit score, though, some actions can have a greater impact than others.
Reducing your credit utilization rate — that’s your balance-to-limit ratio — is a solid place to start. Experts generally recommend a credit utilization rate of 30 percent or less. If you’re able to drastically reduce any high credit card balances, you may see a spike in your score.
If you’re an Allstate Identity Protection member, you can use our credit monitoring feature to keep an eye on your TransUnion credit score. Log in to your account and complete the setup process. If we find new credit activity, we’ll notify you right away — because knowledge is power.